


Unexpected

by misshigherpower



Series: What Matters Most [1]
Category: CSI: NY
Genre: Developing Relationship, Eventual Fluff, F/M, Family, Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-01
Updated: 2017-12-30
Packaged: 2018-03-26 16:26:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 12,589
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3857275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/misshigherpower/pseuds/misshigherpower
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The night of the NYPD Christmas party will change Lindsay's life. Originally posted on ff.net in 2006.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I don’t own CSI: New York or Danny or Lindsay. If I did, Danny would be on display in some sort of hot guy museum. Also, this story starts at Christmas, but the majority of it will take place in the weeks and months following the holiday season. Enjoy!

Christmas was a time to let loose: spend a little more than you should, eat a little more that you should, party a little more than you normally would, and drink a little more than you normally would. It was the last two things that had Lindsay Monroe sneaking out of someone else’s house at 4:30 on a Sunday morning.

**

The first thing Lindsay noticed when she woke up was that she had consumed way too much alcohol the night before. The second thing she noticed was that someone’s arm was draped around her middle. After the pounding in her head had lowered itself to a mild throbbing, she rolled over and allowed her eyes to focus on the face of the man next to her.

Lindsay knew that waking up in another person’s bed was bad, but waking up in the bed of a co-worker was even worse. She quickly realized that she had absolutely nothing on and that escaping from this disturbing situation would involve a scavenger hunt for her clothes. As quietly as possible, she extracted herself from his arms and started to search for her belongings. Her black halter dress was found quickly. The rhinestone pendant winking at her the way a lighthouse signals sailors. As she hastily threw her dress on, she managed to find one of her shoes and her panties on the stairway leading to the main floor. As she stepped off the last step, she tripped over her other shoe, silently praying that he wouldn’t wake up. Monday morning would be awkward enough; she didn’t need a home-base confrontation. She saw her purse in the glow cast from the porch light and grabbed it on her way out the door.

As soon as Lindsay reached the busy street nearby, she hailed a taxi. She desperately needed to get away from here. She would deal with Danny on Monday.

**

The sun’s glare woke Danny on Sunday morning. He immediately noticed that Lindsay was no longer lying next to him. And judging from the lack of heat on that side of the bed, she had been gone for quite a while. In fact, the only clue that she had been there at all was her hair clip on the bedside table. As he got out of bed and ran his shower, he wondered how Monday would play out.


	2. Chapter 2

By the time Monday morning rolled around, Lindsay still didn’t know what she was going to say to Danny when she walked into the lab. She had spent the entire previous day going through what had to have been the most bizarre night of her life. 

Since arriving in New York, various co-workers had invited her to different social activities. In order to prove to her family that she did actually have a life, she went to all of the events she was invited to. Weeks ago Stella had guilted her into agreeing to attend the NYPD Christmas Party. She was sure that once she got there, she would feel less homesick and more in the Christmas spirit, but at the moment, the homesickness was winning. She wanted nothing more than to go home, put on her pajamas and curl up on her couch to watch several episodes of ‘Lost’ that had accumulated on her TiVo over the past two months. 

“Lindsay, you’ll have fun. And would you really want to pass up the opportunity to see the men of the department in tuxes? Flack and Danny usually have too much to drink and end the evening regaling us with tales of their misspent youths. It’s a blast.”

“While I’m sure that’s entertaining, I have better things to do with my time.”

“Really?” Stella said this with her eyebrow lifted.

“What? I have at least four episodes of ‘Lost’ to watch.”

“Lindsay, this is your first Christmas in New York. You would feel a lot less lonely if spent time with actual people instead of fictional con-artists and doctors.”

“Alright.” She sighed. “Black tie?”

“Atta girl!”

************************

For the entire day, his mind had wandered over the previous night. From the second she walked into the party, he hadn’t been able to take his eyes off her. From her upswept hair to her fabulous legs, perfectly showcased in her cocktail dress, she was gorgeous.

“Look at the legs on you, Montana.” As soon as he said it, he knew that he had embarrassed her. The red spots that appeared on her face proved that.

“Yes, Danny, I’m wearing a dress.”

“Well, you look great. Can I get you a drink?” He signaled a waiter, before she even answered.

“A white wine, please.”

“The lady will have a white wine, and I’ll have another scotch.” 

After the waiter brought their drinks, he raised his glass to her. The evening was under way.

As the evening went on, and the drinks kept coming, Flack and Stella observed Danny and Lindsay. Even the most casual observer would be able to tell that something was going on between the two detectives. To the highly trained investigators, the “something” that was going on was blinding. They were so wrapped up in each other that it was difficult to pull them apart, even for a moment.

It was after a slightly inappropriate remark from Danny that Lindsay decided that it was time to end the evening. When she left to get her coat, Danny followed to apologize. As she turned to leave the coat room, she bumped into him. His hands reached out to steady her, and she made the mistake of looking into his eyes. 

“I’m sor…” but before she could even finish, his lips had crashed into hers. They stopped long enough to hail a taxi and make it to Danny’s. The rest, as they say, is history. 

***

As Lindsay stepped into the elevator on Monday morning, she heard a familiar voice shout, “Hold up!” Once he was in the elevator and the doors had closed, he pressed the stop elevator button. 

“You were gone when I woke up.” There was something in his voice that made Lindsay feel guilty. 

“Yeah, I had stuff that I had to do.” When she tucked her hair behind her ear, Danny remembered that he had her hair clip in his bag.

“You left this at my place.” He dug the clip from his bag and tossed it to her.

As she caught the clip, she decided to get the inevitable discussion out of the way.

“Listen, Danny, I don’t think that the other night was a good idea. It was great, but we…”

“We work together. No, no. You’re right. It was great, but we can’t let this affect the job.” The tone of his voice suggested that he didn’t really agree with her at all. 

“Right. Good. Then we should get to work.” She quickly pressed the button to restart the elevator. 

Both were glad to have the awkward conversation out of the way. They had stopped it before it had spun out of control. Little did they know that things were about to get way more complicated.


	3. Chapter 3

As the weeks following Christmas passed, Danny and Lindsay fell back into a comfortable routine. They still had awkward moments, but by and large, things were back to the way they were. 

They had been assigned a few cases together. The case they were currently working on was really taking its toll on Lindsay. A body had been found in a meat locker at a local super market. Immediately upon entering the meat locker, she felt the overwhelming need to be sick. She ran outside and barely made it to the garbage can before expelling the contents of her stomach. 

“Montana, you ok?” Danny followed her out to the alley.

“I don’t know what’s wrong, but the meat really got to me.” She told him, as she stood up and wiped her mouth. It was an outright lie, but at the moment, she didn’t want to face the truth.

“Go home, get some rest. I’ll have Hawkes come and process the scene with me.” He told her as he steered her towards a cruiser. He nodded to the uniform on duty, indicating that she should be escorted home.

“Thanks, Danny.”

“No problem. Get better.”

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Once she arrived back at her tiny apartment, she immediately went to the bathroom and retrieved the bag with the purchases she had made at the drug store the previous evening. She pulled out the band-aids and shaving cream, and then she removed the pregnancy test. She had been too frightened to take it last night, but she couldn’t put it off any longer. She had been experiencing morning sickness for the past two weeks. She had also been extremely tired and irritable. It was time to get this over with.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Lindsay had been staring at the stick for over 20 minutes. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she hoped that if she looked at the little pink plus sign long enough it would disappear. After realizing that wasn’t going to happen, she placed the stick in a Ziploc bag and placed it in her purse. She was a CSI after all; she might need evidence later on.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

After a night of tossing and turning, she woke in the morning barely rested. After a few moments with her head hung over the toilet, she decided that she had to get ready for work. She could stay home, but eventually she would have to go to the lab and face Danny.

She didn’t have any idea what she was going to say, but she had to say something. Something tactful. She couldn’t just turn up at the lab and say, “Remember that night that we agreed to forget, well as it turns out, apparently your little guys are quite the swimmers, because guess what? I’m pregnant with your illegitimate lovechild.” 

The entire way to work, she thought about what she was going to say. In the end, she decided telling him at the lab was not the best idea. She skillfully avoided him all morning, but ran into him coming out of the bathroom.

“Hey, Montana. Feelin’ better?” He asked her.

“Uh, yeah. Much better, thanks.” She took a deep breath, and took the plunge. “I wanted to talk to you about something. Do you want to get something to eat after shift?”

“Sure. Kelly’s?” He asked. He didn’t look at all uncomfortable about the prospect of going for something to eat. If anything, he looked a little bit excited.

“I’ll meet you there.” And with that, she quickly strode away.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

When he walked into the diner on the corner, she was already seated at a booth in the back. In her hands she held a generic white mug, with what looked to be tea inside. 

“Hey.” He slid into the booth and slipped off his jacket.

“I ordered you a coffee. I didn’t know what you wanted to eat.” She told him as he situated himself.

“Thanks.” As the waitress brought his coffee, he quickly scanned the menu. 

“Do you need more time with the menu?” The waitress asked. Danny raised his eyebrows at Lindsay. She shook her head no.

“I’ll have a Caesar salad.” She told the waitress.

“And I’ll have a cheeseburger, extra pickles. With fries.” He handed the waitress the menu and then turned back to Lindsay.

“So, what did ya wanna talk about?” He looked at her expectantly. 

While she held her hands around her mug, she blurted out what she had hoped to gently break to him. In retrospect, telling someone that you’re pregnant isn’t something you can ease into. 

“I’m pregnant.” She wasn’t looking at him when she said it, but after a few seconds of awkward silence she looked up.

His mouth was hanging open like a giant cave.

“I just thought you should know. I’m having this baby. I’m not asking for money, or even support, really. I mean, you can be as involved or as uninvolved as you want. I just thought you should know.” 

“Six weeks.” He still looked shocked, but at least he had regained the ability to speak.

“Yeah, I’m six weeks pregnant. Danny, I mean it. You don’t have to feel obligated. I’ll understand if you don’t want to be involved. Maybe just take some time to think about it, and we can talk later.” She started to gather her things, when he reached across the table and took her hand.

“I don’t need time. I want to be involved.” He had a slight grin on his face as he said it.

“Really?” She could feel tears starting to well in her eyes.

“Yeah. I know this isn’t the best time, or even the best circumstances, but this is a baby. Our baby. I want to be involved. Doctor’s appointments, ultrasounds, birth, first steps, first word, dance recitals, baseball games. I want to be there for everything. My dad could’ve cared less about me when I was a kid. This baby is not growing up without a dad.” As he said it, the tears started to roll down her cheeks.

“Hey, now. No crying, it’s not good for the baby.” He wiped away her tears as he moved around the booth to sit next to her. “Have you been to a doctor?”

“No. I took a home test last night.” She told him as he wrapped his arm around her.

“Alright, let’s eat. I’ll call my sister in the morning; get the name of her ob/gyn.”

“Thanks.”

“Hey, parents have to stick together, right?” As they started eating, Lindsay felt a warmth settle around her. Maybe things weren’t going to be as bad as she thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please review.


	4. Chapter 4

As Danny and Lindsay had finished their meal the night before, his cell phone had rung, calling him back to the lab. He had been at the lab until well into the night. So after a few hours sleep and a shower, he finally called his sister.

“Hello?” A little boy answered the phone.

“Hey, Paul. It’s Uncle Danny. Is your mom there?” He asked.

“MMMMOOOOM! Uncle Danny’s on the phone.” Boy, did that kid have a set of lungs on him, Danny thought. 

“Paul, keep it down. The baby’s sleeping.” He could hear his sister making her way to the phone. “Danny?”

“Hey, Sis. How’s life treatin’ ya?”

“Oh, you know, the house is a mess, I have to get Paul to school, and my annoying little brother called at 8:00 on a Wednesday morning, while the baby is still sleeping.” She laughed as she said it, so he knew he wasn’t in any real trouble.

“Sorry, Nikki. I just need a favor and then I’ll let you get back to your day.”

“You need a favor? The last time you asked me for a favor I had to break up with your latest girlfriend of the week.”

“That was in high school. And if I remember correctly, you did it so that I wouldn’t tell Ma that you had a boy at the house while she and Dad weren’t there.”

“Fine. Whaddya need?”

“The name of your OB/GYN.”

“What?”

“You heard me. It’s for a case.”

“Don’t even try to pull that with me. I may not have followed you over to the good side of the law, but I’m not stupid. If this were for a case, you’d already have someone. Who did you knock up and why aren’t you freaking out?”

“Fine, it’s not for a case.”

“Who is she?”

“Nicole, can ya just give me the name?”

“Not until you admit that you got someone pregnant!”

“FINE! I got her pregnant, OK. Are ya happy? I slept with someone I work with, and I got her pregnant.”

“Danny, what are you gonna do?”

“Would ya just give me the name and let us figure it out?”

“Jeez. Her name’s Dr. Jorgensen. Her number’s 555-3763.”

“Thanks.”

“Danny, if you need anything, give me a call.”

“I will. Give the rugrats a hug from their Uncle Danny.” He said before hanging up the phone.

Before he’d gone back to the lab, he’d made plans to meet Lindsay at her place to discuss things before work. He quickly grabbed the piece of paper he’d scribbled on and grabbed his jacket as he ran out of the brownstone.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

As she sat at her kitchen table sipping a cup of coffee, she wondered what the day would bring. Danny was coming over to discuss things, as well as to schedule a first doctor’s appointment. He had said he wanted to be involved, but maybe he had re-examined the situation over night. Maybe he realized what a huge thing this was. 

Before she could further her train of thought, she heard the buzz signaling Danny’s arrival. She pressed the button to let him in and unlocked her door. When he arrived at her door 10 seconds later, paper bag and drink tray in hand, he did not look pleased. 

“You buzzed me in without checking to see who it was.” He told her.

“So? You said you’d be here at 8:30. It’s 8:30.” She said as she picked up her mug of coffee.

“So? I could have been anybody. Do you know what kinda creeps live in New York? This isn’t Montana, you gotta be careful.” As he placed the bag on her table, he shrugged off his jacket. 

“I know this isn’t Montana. What’s in the bag?” 

“I hope you like bagels.” He said as he opened the bag and pushed it towards her. “So, we got a lot to talk about. I got the name of my sister’s doctor. She’s nosy, by the way, so I had to tell her. Hopefully she won’t tell anyone else.”

“I wanted to talk about that.” Lindsay grabbed a bagel and continued. “I think we should wait to tell Mac.”

“I agree, the minute we tell him, we’ve gotta be prepared to tell everyone else.”

“I know. Let’s book a doctor’s appointment and once we have confirmation and a due date, we can decide when to tell Mac.”

“Here’s the number.” He slid the paper across to her as she picked up her cordless phone. She stood and walked to the window as she dialed the number. He couldn’t help but notice her flat stomach. He wondered at the advanced process that was going on inside of her at that very moment, and he couldn’t help but feel a little proud. Looking at her, he almost couldn’t contain himself. He wanted to feel her against him, the way he had that night.

“Danny, is Friday at 9:30 good for you?” She had interrupted his train of thought, one that had been about to get very graphic. He shifted uncomfortably.

“Yeah.” She turned back to the phone and finished scheduling the appointment. “OK, we’re in. Are you OK? You look a little flushed.”

“Nah, I’m fine, just a little warm.”

“We should get to the lab.” Lindsay grabbed her coat and purse. 

“Yeah.”

As he followed her out the door, he wondered how he was going to make it through the next nine months, let alone the next 18 years.


	5. Chapter 5

“September 13.” Lindsay said softly.

“September 13.” He repeated.

“I can’t believe it. It seems so far away, but not far enough.” She said as he held the door open for her.

“There’s a lot to do.” They slowly walked down the street, away from the doctor’s office.

“Diapers, strollers, cribs, clothes. We have to get double of everything.”

“Babies are expensive. Do you wanna grab something to eat?”

“Yeah. I could eat a horse. I’m starving.” As they headed into the diner where she had broken the news, she couldn’t help but feel a little apprehensive about the prospect of telling everyone else the news.

“What can I get ya?” The waitress that brought them their menus was a different waitress than the last time they had been in here, but one that they had had many times before.

“I’ll have a coffee, please.” Lindsay told the waitress.

“Actually, we’ll both have milk. Thanks.” The waitress eyed them suspiciously, but took the order and left.

“What the heck was that?” She hissed.

“You can’t have coffee; it’s bad for the baby. Besides, a little bit of calcium never hurt anyone.” He smirked at her as he looked down at his menu.

“You could’ve asked before you changed my order. I’m pregnant, I don’t belong to you.” With that she turned to her menu, closing the topic.

After they had ordered their meal, Danny decided to broach a sensitive topic.

“So, I don’t know when you wanna tell Mac, but I think we gotta let our families know fairly soon. My sister already knows, and I’m afraid she’ll slip something to my mother. If Ma finds out from someone else, she’s gonna be pissed.”

“I’m not sure how my family is going to take this. This will be the first grandchild.”

“This’ll be the fifth. Nikki has Paul and Becky, Mikey has Joey and Timmy. Now I gotta warn ya, Ma’s gonna wanna meet you, but my Dad’s not so…respectable.”

“As long as you’re willing to meet my family, I’m sure I can handle it.”

“When I say not so respectable, I mean, he’s in the mafia.”

“I know. I’m not worried, you’ve managed to stay out of trouble, and I’m guessing you can take care of this kid. Now, you might not want to meet my dad.”

“Oh yeah?”

“He’s very protective of his little girls. And he owns a shot gun.”

“Thanks for the heads up.”

“No problem.”

~*~

Tonight was the night that they would be telling Danny’s family. It had been over a month since they had made their decision to start telling people, but with the size and complexity of Danny’s family, this was the earliest they could get everyone together. They had decided to tell both their families on the same day. They would go to dinner with his family and then they would call her family. 

The buzzer at her door went off, letting her know that Danny had arrived. She quickly ran to the intercom. Her hair was still in curlers and she only had half her make-up on when she pressed the button allowing her to speak with the person that had buzzed.

“Hello?” She said into the wall.

“It’s Danny.” The wall crackled back to her.

“Are you sure you’re Danny? I’ve been told there are a lot of creeps living in New York.”

“Very funny, Montana. Are you gonna let me in?”

“Come on up. I just have to finish getting ready.” She went back into the bathroom to finish her make-up and hair. Once he arrived in the apartment, he came to stand at the bathroom door while she finished getting ready.

“You look great.”

“Thanks. Is your mom going to approve?” She indicated her simple black skirt, with her favourite pink sweater. Hoping that it would look alright. 

“She’ll approve.”

“I didn’t know what to wear. I’ve never had to tell someone that I’m about to make them a grandmother.”

“Neither have I, but when Mikey and Tia told my parents they were expecting, she was wearing fishnets, so I think you’re good.” He helped her into her coat, and waited in the hall while she locked up.

~*~

Waiting on the front step at Danny’s parents was a nerve racking experience. She knew that Danny’s parents and his siblings and their families would be there. It was a lot of people to be telling. When Danny’s mother opened the door, all of her worries disappeared.

“Get in here, you two, it’s freezing out there.” They were quickly whisked into the house, and their coats were removed. “Danny, she’s beautiful. Why haven’t you brought her around before?” Lindsay blushed a little at the comment.

“Ma, you’re embarrassing me.” Danny informed her.

“You must be special. Danny never brings girls home. He’s always too busy, with the job he says. I know the truth, he’s afraid they’ll meet us, and never want to speak to him again.” She ignored her son, as she steered Lindsay into the living room. Danny quickly made the introductions.

“Alright, here we go. In the armchair, is my dad Vinny. On the couch is my sister Nikki and baby Becky. Next to her, we’ve got her husband Max. My sister-in-law Tia and my big brother Mikey. And here on the floor, we’ve got Louie. And of course, the woman with the gift of the gab, my mother, Maria.”

“Stop being so cheeky, Daniel.” She said as she cuffed him on the back of the head. “Now, what’s your girlfriend’s name?”

“Sorry, this is Lindsay.” Danny introduced her.

“Alright, introductions have been made. Nicky, Tia, you round up the boys and then we eat.”

~*~

After an excellent dinner, in which Lindsay ate more food than she ever thought she could, the family went back to the living room. Danny’s mother was hovering around with tea and coffee, when Danny decided it was time to make their announcement.

“Ma, you might wanna take a seat. Lindsay and I have an announcement.”

“You’re getting married, aren’t you? I knew there was a reason you brought her home. Vinny, our baby’s getting married.”

“Maria, shut it. Let the kid talk.” Vinny barked from his armchair. Over the course of the evening, Lindsay had developed an extreme dislike of Danny’s father and from the way the evening had gone, it seemed that Danny shared that dislike. Danny raised his eyebrows at Lindsay and she nodded, indicating that he should continue.

“Lindsay and I are having a baby.” Immediately, chaos broke out in the room. Nikki and Tia swept in to hug Lindsay, while the men in the room congratulated Danny. The only silent figure in the room was Danny’s mother.

“Mrs. Messer, are you alright?” Lindsay asked the lady. 

“Danny, you are getting married. This is wonderful. Another baby and a wedding…” She was starting to ramble.

“Ma, we’re not getting married.” As soon as Danny had said this the room went eerily quiet.

“You’re not getting married?” Lindsay noted that Mrs. Messer was starting to look a little red in the face. “You can get her pregnant, but you won’t marry her? I didn’t raise my sons to be cowards. You are supposed to be the good son, but you get a girl pregnant, and you won’t marry her? I am ashamed. What is this poor girl’s family going to think of us? That I raised a son who won’t marry the mother of his child.” As Mrs. Messer continued with her speech, Danny was looking more and more guilty. Lindsay decided that she had to step in.

“Mrs. Messer, it’s not Danny’s fault. He asked me to marry him, but…but I just don’t think I’m ready to get married. This whole pregnancy thing was very unexpected and a little intimidating. So, please don’t be mad at Danny.” With that Mrs. Messer pushed Max out of the way, and sat down next to Lindsay.

“Oh, Lindsay. I’m so sorry. I know, pregnancy can be very intimidating. I didn’t mean to make you feel badly. You don’t want to get married yet, we’ll leave it be, for now.” She wrapped her arms around Lindsay, but Lindsay could tell from the look on Danny’s face that the “for now” was a very serious “we’ll see.”

~*~

“Thanks for speaking up. I was about to get murdered.” He said as he took her hand to lead her down the stairs. 

“I know. Your mother can be very scary. I have a feeling that we’ll be hearing more about our marriage, or lack thereof.” She said as she settled her arm into his as they walked along the street.

“You better believe it. Once Ma starts on something, she doesn’t let it go. She’ll leave it until after the baby’s born, but she won’t be completely happy until you’re Mrs. Daniel Messer.” She felt a little tingle go through her as she heard that. Part of her wondered what it would be like to be Mrs. Daniel Messer, while another part of her was screaming for her to stop being so ridiculous. Danny would never want to marry her. They had decided that they were a bad idea; they had to think about what was best for the baby.

“Let’s get back to my place. I want to change before we call my parents. These pantyhose are killing me.”

~*~

“Monroe residence.” The slightly accented voice said over the line.

“Hi, Mom, it’s Lindsay.” 

“Hi sweetheart. You sound a little funny, is there something wrong with your phone.”

“No, I’m on speaker phone. Can you get Daddy and Ashley and put the phone on speaker?”

“Sure. Just a minute.” Danny and Lindsay could hear the family getting ready then Lindsay’s mom got back on the phone.

“OK, we’re all here.” Lindsay’s mom said.

“Hi, Lindsay.” The sound of a male and a female voice came on the line.

“Hi Daddy, hi Ashley. I’ve got someone here with me. His name is Danny.”

“Mr. and Mrs. Monroe. Ashley.” He nodded his head the way he usually did when meeting people.

“Well now, this sounds serious. Are you sure everything is OK, sweetheart?”

“Mom, everything is fine. The reason that we called is that we wanted to let you know that…we’re having a baby.”

“You’re having a baby?” The sound of a father, unsure of what to say to his daughter, could be heard through the phone.

“Yes. And I’m very happy. We’re very happy.”

“We’re very happy, Mr. and Mrs. Monroe.” Danny quickly chimed in.

“So he’s sticking by you? Not like Mary Jane’s fellow, who left her high and dry when she was in the family way.” If the moment hadn’t been so serious, Danny would have laughed at the term “in the family way.”

“Yes, Mom. He’s sticking by me. He came with me to my first doctor’s appointment. I met his family this evening.”

“Well…as long as you’re happy…You’re having a baby. Oh, sugar, I’m so happy for you.”

After another half hour on the phone with the Monroe’s, Lindsay and Danny hung up the phone. 

“Well, this was quite a night.” He said to her. They were sitting together on her couch. Without even noticing, she had ended up slightly curled into his side and he had his arm resting along the back of the couch. 

“Yes it was.” She looked up at him as he checked his watch.

“It’s late. You must be exhausted, so I should get going.” She looked at the clock and noticed that it was getting close to 1:00 am.

“Why don’t you stay? My couch isn’t too bad.” 

“I think I’ll take you up on that offer.” She grabbed him a pillow and blanket from her linen closet and went to get ready for bed. 

Shortly after they had said goodnight and turned out the lights, Danny heard a noise from the bedroom. A few seconds later he saw Lindsay’s head pop around the door.

“Danny?” She whispered.

“Yeah?” He said as he sat up and turned the light on.

“Are you scared?” She asked him, coming to sit on the end of the couch.

“Of what?” He asked as he scooted closer to her.

“Of having this baby.” She glanced up at him nervously, hoping that he didn’t think she was a nutcase.

“Terrified.” He told her as he smiled at her.

“Me, too.” She smiled back as he wrapped his arm around her.


	6. Chapter 6

Monday was the day. They had a meeting with Mac at 8:30. Personally, she had wanted to wait a little longer, but she couldn’t hide it any more. She had been dressing in loose tops and was never seen without her lab coat or a jacket of some description. But yesterday had been the straw that broke the camel’s back. She hadn’t been able to do up her jeans. She should have expected it. She was 5 months pregnant, after all. 

It had been nice while it had lasted. A secret that she and Danny alone had shared. Once word got around, there would be endless questions. How did it happen? Were they a couple now? Was it a boy or a girl? 

So they had one final weekend left. And he was late for their planning session. They still had to decide how to tell Mac. But the way they told Mac would be different from the way they told Stella, which would be different from the way they told Sheldon and Flack. It was all so confusing.

“Hey, sorry I’m late. I overslept.” She was broken out of her thoughts by Danny’s arrival.

“It’s OK. It gave Peanut and me some time to think.” Lindsay told him as she placed her hand over the small, but noticeable bump that was their baby. 

“Peanut?” He asked. He still couldn’t believe that this was happening. When he looked at her, he couldn’t believe that in a few short months they would have a living, breathing, perfect combination of themselves. He wanted to protect them both. He hated the fact that she lived by herself in the cramped little apartment on the other side of town. He was afraid that he would miss something, either now, when she was pregnant or later, when the baby had been born. He also hated the fact that she had no idea what she was doing to him. 

“I hate calling the baby it, so I decided to call the baby Peanut instead.” She looked at him with that innocent smile and he wanted to melt. He wanted to tell her right then and there that the idea of Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Messer sounded pretty damn good to him. But he couldn’t. She was the one that had said that they needed to stay focused for the job. Of course, that was before they had found out she was pregnant. 

“And what were you and Peanut thinking about?” He asked her.

“We were thinking about how to tell the team that I’m pregnant.” She told him.

“That part’ll be easy. It’s telling ‘em that you’re pregnant with Messer spawn that’ll be the hard part.” She nearly spit her juice out when he said that. She couldn’t stop laughing. 

“Messer spawn?” she managed to say. “We can’t say that to Mac.”

“No, no. That’s for Flack.”

After they had finished their breakfast and nailed down the specifics of their conversation with Mac, Lindsay got ready to leave.

“Where’re you off to in such a hurry?” He asked her.

“If I don’t go shopping this afternoon, I will have no clothes to wear on Monday morning. Nothing fits anymore.” That sounded pretty damn good to him.

“You want me to come with?”

“You want to go shopping for maternity clothes?”

“Why not?”

“Because it’s sorta girlie.”

“Lots of guys do it.”

“When they’re married to or dating the mother of their child. You can’t tell me you don’t have better things to do with your Saturday afternoon.”

“At this precise moment, nothing is better than spending time with you and Peanut.” It made her feel warm and tingly inside. He probably wasn’t saying it for the reasons that she hoped he was saying it, but it still made her feel good.

“Danny, go have fun. Nothing important is going to happen while I go clothes shopping.”

“Alright, but don’t say I didn’t offer.” They exited the restaurant together. Once they reached the curb, he hailed her a taxi. As she got in, he gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. Before she could say anything, he closed the door and the cab sped away.

~*~

He started Monday the way he had started most days since she had told him she was pregnant. Danny would stop to pick up bagels and tea on his way to Lindsay’s. Lindsay was a caffeine addict, and he had given up coffee to make her feel better. There were some mornings, like this morning, when he would’ve killed for a cup of coffee, but he was supporting her.

He would then arrive at Lindsay’s in time for her panicked attempts at dressing to make sure that she didn’t look pregnant. This was the last morning that she would be doing that.

When he finally arrived at her apartment, he found her already dressed and calmly reading the Entertainment section of the newspaper, with the Sports section laid out for him.

“Morning.” She said cheerily, which was highly unusual at this time of the day.

“Well, you’re certainly in a good mood this morning. And you’re dressed.”

“It’s amazing how easy it is to get dressed in the morning, when you have options.” 

“Well, you look great.” She really did. She was wearing a pair of black pants and a green flowing shirt that if you were looking for it, you could tell that she was pregnant, but wouldn’t give it away as soon as they walked into the lab.

“Thanks. It cost me a fortune, but I have clothes again.” She told him. “Speaking of which, I looked at some baby stuff this weekend.” Off his look, she quickly said, “Don’t worry, I didn’t buy anything. I’m thinking that we’re going to need two cribs, but I don’t think we’ll need two strollers or two baby carriers. Those things will go with Peanut. So when I have Peanut, I’ll have the stroller and baby carrier, and you’ll have them when you have Peanut.” She looked up at him as she helped herself to a bagel. 

It quickly brought to his mind the fact that when the baby was born; they were going to have to work out a childcare schedule. Until then, he hadn’t really thought about it, but realized that he had seen Lindsay and the baby living with him. This was something they were going to have to discuss.

“Sounds great.” He said, less than enthusiastically, she noted. “We should get going; we’re supposed to meet Mac in 40 minutes.” 

~*~

When they arrived at the lab, they went straight to the locker room to hang up their coats. After checking the day’s work assignments, they made their way to Mac’s office.

He was sitting at his desk, filling out paper work when Lindsay knocked on the door. He signaled for them to come in, and quickly finished his thought before closing the folder on his desk. He looked up and saw that both Lindsay and Danny looked nervous. He had been waiting for this day. The day when one of them would ask for a transfer, because they had decided that they wanted to be together. He had noticed the chemistry the two seemed to have, both on the job and off. He had decided that when this day came, he would tell them that as long as they kept their personal lives separate from their lives at the lab; he would allow them to remain in the lab. They worked well together, and as long as that continued, he really couldn’t justify transferring one of the extremely talented CSIs. He certainly wasn’t prepared for the announcement that was made.

“Mornin’, Mac.” Danny said.

“Danny, Lindsay. What can I do for you this morning?” Mac said. He figured he would make this as easy on them as possible.

“Well, we have some news that could potentially affect our working situation.” Lindsay informed him.

“I’m listening.” Mac told them.

“We’re…” Lindsay started, and then paused, clearly searching for the right words.

“I got her pregnant.” Danny blurted out. Lindsay turned to Danny, looking completely shocked.

“Danny.” She hissed. Turning back to Mac, she continued. “That was not the way we wanted to tell you. Danny gets a little excited.” She said pointedly.

Mac’s expression had remained the same. Never one to give away what he was thinking, he slowly gathered his thoughts.

“I see.”

“We just figured that you needed to know, because I’m going to need to go on maternity leave, but also that you should know all the facts.” Danny was still sitting there, waiting for Mac to ream him out. Oddly enough though, at the moment he felt that Mac wasn’t the person he should be worried about. Lindsay looked ready to slaughter him.

“Well, I appreciate your openness with the situation. Come see me this afternoon, and I can give you the appropriate paperwork to send to Human Resources. I’m assuming you want to tell the rest of the team, so I’ll let you go do that. Congratulations, Danny and Lindsay.” The topic seemed to be closed. Mac wasn’t mad at them. In fact, he seemed genuinely happy for them. 

As soon as they had returned to the locker room, Lindsay started in on him.

“What the hell was that? We had it all planned out. I was going to tell him that I was pregnant and that you were the father and then we were going to wait for his reaction to see what kind of damage control we needed to do. You’re so lucky that Mac doesn’t freak out. What were you thinking?” She angrily asked him. She looked down at him sitting on the bench between the lockers, and instantly felt bad.

“I’m sorry. I just…Mac’s always thought that I’m a guy with a shady past, trying to assuage my guilt by working for the law. I’m constantly trying to prove myself. I don’t want him thinking that I’m some screw-up, who can’t keep it in his pants, and ends up getting the office sweetheart pregnant.” Lindsay felt even worse after his admission. She had always known that Danny felt badly about his past, but she had no idea that he thought that other people felt that way too.

“Mac doesn’t think that. Mac thinks very highly of you. Everybody here thinks very highly of you. None of us think that you’re a screw-up. Since the minute I got here, I’ve been trying to live up to your reputation. You and Mac and Stella are the three most intimidating people in this office, but you’re the most intimidating. We all know that you’re trying to make up for the things your family has done, which makes you work harder than anybody else, because you feel that you have something to prove. But you don’t have to prove anything; everyone knows that you’re dedicated.” She told him as she sat down next to him, and placed her hand on his back. “Now, as for not being able to keep it in your pants and getting the office sweetheart pregnant, well, there are so many things wrong with that statement. We were both there that night, we’d both had a little too much to drink, and we both made the decision to sleep together, so no one can fault you for that. And I’m hardly the office sweetheart. The girls in admin are going to think I’m some kind of hussy, who wanted to get her hooks into the office hunk.” He had to laugh at this.

“Hussy?” He questioned as he looked up.

“I was on the phone with my mom last night.” She replied.

“Huh. So, I’m the office hunk?” He asked.

“Well, the perceived office hunk. The word hunk will be replaced by teddy bear when they find out that you bring me breakfast and escort me to work every morning.” She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before she stood up. “We should go find Stella and Hawkes. If you want to tell Flack about “Messer spawn,” we have to tell them first.”

He looked at her in awe. How had she done it? He had gone from feeling like the world’s biggest schmuck to feeling like a decent guy. 

~*~

Danny and Lindsay found Stella and Hawkes discussing their latest case in the break room. Lindsay grabbed two glasses of water, while Danny pulled two bananas out of the fridge. They then sat themselves next to each other at the table, while Stella and Hawkes eyed them suspiciously.

“Okay, what’s going on?” Stella asked.

“Well, we didn’t want you to hear it from anyone else…” Lindsay started, but was interrupted by Stella.

“You’re dating, aren’t you? I knew there was something going on with you two.” Stella said.

“No, we’re not dating. We’re having a baby.” Danny said.

“You’re having a baby?” Hawkes questioned.

“Yep.” Danny confirmed.

“Together?” Stella asked.

“That’s right.” Lindsay told her.

“But you’re not dating?” Stella wanted to make sure that she had all her facts straight.

“Right.” Danny told them.

“Congratulations.” Hawkes gave his congratulations, while Stella processed the information. She broke into a wide smile and also gave her congratulations.

“Now, we need your help.” Danny started and then filled the other two in on their plan for letting Flack know.

~*~

Flack got back from his latest scene late in the afternoon. As soon as he stepped off the elevator, Hawkes approached him.

“Hey, Flack. Lindsay and Danny are having a horrible fight, so you’re going to want to avoid anyplace that they are.” Hawkes told him as he got on the elevator.

“Great.” Flack knew that if Danny and Lindsay were having a fight, it had to be bad. Lindsay was the sweetest person he had ever met, but when she was pissed you better watch out. 

As he walked towards the break room for his cup of coffee, he saw Stella and decided to see if she knew what was going on with Lindsay and Danny.

“Hawkes ran outta here like a man on fire. What’s up with Danny an’ Lindsay?” He asked as he poured his coffee.

“They’re having a fight. He told her she was looking a bit hefty, which was bad enough, but she thought he said heifer. That was around noon. It’s escalated since then.” She told him. “I tried to get them to see sense and I was told to ‘Stay the hell out of other people’s business, nosy cow.’”

“Ouch. That seems a little bitchy.” He said.

“Well, if I thought someone had called me a heifer, I’d be bitchy. Look, I’ve gotta run. Danny and Lindsay are still on for another couple hours, so, good luck, Flack.”

“Thanks, Stel. I appreciate that.” Flack started on his way to the locker room.

As he approached the locker room, Danny stormed out.

“Women! They’re all crazy.” He muttered as he passed Flack. 

As Flack was entering the locker room, the rest of the group was preparing for the final stage of Operation: Shock Flack. Danny, Stella, and Hawkes had all gathered in a meeting room on the other end of the department. It was all Lindsay for the next couple minutes. 

When Flack got into the locker room, he looked around praying Lindsay wasn’t in the room. He really didn’t want to have to deal with an angry Lindsay. He had just finished putting his jacket in his locker when he heard it. A faint sob coming from behind the row of lockers. He popped his head around and saw Lindsay sitting on the bench crying. If there was one thing Flack was a sucker for, it was a crying woman. He hated it. He would do anything to make it stop. He approached Lindsay.

“Hey, Lindsay. What’sa matter?” He asked quietly.

“Danny. That pig-headed, insulting jerk.” 

“Yeah. I heard about that. I’ve known Danny a long time, and he sometimes says things without thinking about it first.”

“He called me a heifer.” She angrily told him.

“I heard he said hefty.” With the death glare that Lindsay was giving him, he decided it was probably a good idea to say something else. “What he probably meant, was that you were so skinny before, too skinny really. He was probably just admiring your new curves.” He desperately hoped that this wouldn’t offend her. The smile that lit up her face let him know that he hadn’t stuck his foot in it. She launched herself at him and wrapped her arms around his neck.

“Oh, Don, you’re so sweet.” He awkwardly started to pat her back, just as the door to the locker room opened and Danny walked in looking pretty mad.

“Flack, what the hell d’ya think you’re doin’? Get your hands offa her.” He shouted. Oh, great. Flack thought. Just what I need, in the middle of their sexually fuelled fight, I get caught hugging her.

“Hey…” He was quickly cut off by an irate Lindsay.

“Don was just comforting me, you pig. He doesn’t think I’m fat.” She shouted right back at him. 

“That doesn’t mean he can have his hands all over you.” He yelled.

“He was hugging me, you idiot. Just because you knocked me up with your Messer spawn, doesn’t mean that you own me.” At that precise moment, there was a choking sound from behind them.

The look on Flack’s face was priceless. They just hoped that the video surveillance they had going had caught it all.

“You’re pr…pr…pregnant.” He managed to splutter to Lindsay. “And you…you called her hefty?” He spluttered in Danny’s direction.

“Gotcha!” Danny laughed. He could no longer contain himself. He pointed to the location of the camera. “You should see your face, Flack.”

“Wait. This whole thing was a set-up?”

“Yep.” Lindsay giggled as a laughing Stella and Hawkes entered the room. “We got the whole thing on tape, too.” She told him.

“So, you’re not pregnant, and he didn’t call you fat?” He questioned as he regained his composure.

“Oh, no. She’s pregnant, but we wanted to find a good way to tell you. Finally, getting you back for the “date” with your sister.” Danny laughed.

“That was pretty good, guys. So, who’s the father?” Flack asked as he sat down.

“Danny.” Lindsay told him.

“Yeah, you don’t get me twice.” He laughed.

“No, really. The baby’s mine.” Danny said, now completely serious.

“Oh. Congratulations.” 

“Danny, Lindsay, go home. The rest of you, back to work.” Mac said as he passed the room. Flack, Stella, and Hawkes made their way back to their respective work stations, laughing the whole way.

“Well, they all know.” Danny said.

“And nothing bad happened.” Lindsay replied as they stepped into the elevator to head home. 

“And nothing bad happened.” He repeated.

“I’m starving. What’re you making for dinner?” She asked.

“You’re getting a little confident, aren’t you?” He teased.

“You’re a sucker, you can’t deny us anything.” She teased back. Little did she know that it was completely true, he couldn’t deny her anything.


	7. Chapter 7

Danny was busy narrowing down a paint sample from a crime scene when he saw Lindsay rush down the hallway. As a woman about to enter her seventh month of pregnancy, Lindsay didn’t usually rush anywhere anymore. His first thought was that something was wrong, but then he saw the smile on her face. The smile that could light up all of New York during a power outage.

“Danny, give me your hand.” She squealed.

“What?” He was a little confused.

“Give me your hand. Quick!” Without waiting for him to comply, she grabbed his hand and placed it on her belly. And then he felt it. It was gone before he registered what it was, but when she quickly moved his hand to another location he knew.

“Was that…?” He trailed off, knowing that she would know what he meant.

“Yes.” She beamed up at him. Within seconds he had wrapped his arms around her, embracing her in a tight hug.

“How long have you been able to feel that?” He asked her as he released her.

“A few weeks, but it was more like butterflies until just now.” She said as they went into the office and sat down. “When it started this morning it was much stronger, I really hoped you’d be able to feel it.”

“Why didn’t you tell me you had started to feel the baby?” He asked her.

“I didn’t want you to feel jealous. You get so excited about things that I feel badly when it’s something you can’t experience.” She told him.

“You’re amazingly sweet, you know that?” 

“I know. I am amazing. I’ve got to get back to work. See you later?” She asked as he helped her up.

“Yeah. Chicken and rice for dinner?”

“Sounds good.” 

~*~

Danny had been waiting outside the department store for 20 minutes. Lindsay was rarely ever late, and when she was she always called to let someone know where she was. It was very unlike her and he was starting to worry, an emotion that he seemed to be battling constantly. Every time she called him, he was worried that something horrible had happened. 

When he finally caught sight of her, she looked like she was dragging. 

“I’m sorry I’m late. I forgot to charge my cell phone battery and my meeting with my realtor ran late. Can we sit down for a little bit? My back is killing me.” She said. As he led her toward a bench, the word realtor hit him.

“Sure. You had a meeting with a realtor?” He asked as they sat down.

“Yeah. After the baby shower that Stella and your sister threw for us, I realized that I have nowhere to put all of this stuff, let alone a baby. I should have started looking the minute I found out I was pregnant, but there was just so much going on. And now I’m just so frustrated, I don’t think I’ll find a place before Peanut arrives. I’ve only got about six weeks left.” She looked like she was about to cry.

“Well, what’re ya lookin’ for?” He asked as an idea slowly began to form in his mind.

“I want a place with two bedrooms, close to you, close to work, doesn’t cost me a fortune, and the real kicker, I want a back yard. Somewhere that Peanut can play and be safe.”

“That’s quite a list, Ms. Monroe.” He told her with a smirk.

“I know. This would have been so much easier in Montana.” She told him.

“Listen, let’s go pick out the stroller we want, and then I think I know a place that will meet all of your requirements.” At that, she perked right up.

“Really? Oh, Danny, if you can find me a place, I’ll love you forever.” As soon as she said it, a blush formed on her cheeks.

“Bring on the love.”

~*~

“I can’t believe that we just spent that much on a stroller, Danny.” Lindsay said as the cab they were in slowed to a stop outside Danny’s brownstone.

“That’s nothing. Nicky spent $375 on a stroller for Paul. $200 is a walk in the park, considering that we’re gonna use the hell out of it.” Danny lifted the box containing the stroller out of the trunk of the cab.

“Everything is so expensive. Babies are so tiny; I don’t think I ever realized how much stuff they actually need.” As they entered the house, Danny put the stroller next to the sofa. “Is this place you’re going to show me nearby?” Lindsay asked.

“We’re here.” He told her. Her mouth opened in shock.

“This is your place, Danny.” 

“I know.” 

“Danny, I can’t live here.” She told him.

“Why not? It meets all of your requirements, plus I’ll be here to help with late night feedings and diaper changes. Just let me show you around, and then you can decide.” He said.

He showed her the bedrooms, and the backyard, and the space that the last occupant had turned into an apartment. It was fantastic, but it was Danny’s overview of the situation that sold her.

“Danny, this place must cost a fortune to rent. I don’t think I’d be able to pay half the rent, I don’t even want to know how you can afford the whole thing.” She told him.

“I don’t pay rent. I pay property taxes and utilities, and that’s it. My grandmother left this to me when she died. She was so happy that I joined the force, and didn’t follow in my father’s footsteps, that she wanted to reward me. This place was paid off years before she died. She rented the third floor out to make some money, but I never have. For the time being, you can move into the other big bedroom and we can make the small room a nursery. Then, once Peanut is older, you can decide if you want to take the apartment or stay where you are. It’ll save us both some money, if we each pay half the household expenses. Plus, when you go into labour, I’ll be able to take you. We won’t have to worry about meeting each other there. I’ll be with you the whole time.”

“What if living together doesn’t work out? It was a horrible idea for Ross and Rachel.” 

“If it doesn’t work out, then we find you another place. And you’ll have been able to save money while you’re living here.” He replied.

“OK.” She said. “I’ll move in.” 

~*~

“How did we get stuck with painting?” Flack whined.

“Because Lindsay can’t be near the paint fumes, and Stella’s helping her finish packing up her apartment. I don’t want her lifting anything heavy.” Danny told him. “You missed a spot.”

“Shut up. I’m taking from the green paint that you and Little Miss Carrier of Messer Spawn don’t know if you’re having a boy or a girl.”

“Nope. We figure that since the actual pregnancy was a surprise; why not finish it the same way it started. You missed another spot.”

“Thanks, Messer. You know, you could be doing this by yourself.” Flack told him.

“Well, if it makes you feel any better, we’re very glad that you’re helping us out with this.”

“We, huh? When’re you gonna tell her that you’re in love with her?” Flack asked.

“What? I’m not…in love with her. I mean, obviously I love her because she’s the mother of my child, but I’m not in love with her. It’s complicated.” 

“Complicated, my ass. You’re in love with her. She’s pregnant with your child, you two are always together, and you convinced her to move in with you. Those are not the actions of two people who aren’t in love.”

“We’re not in love.”

“Whatever you say, man.”

~*~

The paint in the nursery had finally dried, and all of Lindsay’s things had been moved from her old apartment to Danny’s. This would be the first night that they would be living together. When she arrived home from her prenatal yoga class, she was surprised to find Danny in the kitchen unpacking Chinese food. 

“What’s this?” She asked as she grabbed a fork and speared a baby corn cob. 

“I figured we could celebrate our new living arrangement with some Chinese food and a couple movies.” He told her as he placed the cartons on a tray and grabbed two plates.

“Sounds good. Let me go clear my books off the coffee table.”

“That’s the crappy TV. The good TV is in my room. My bed’s way more comfortable than the sofa.” He proceeded to pick up the tray and make his way up the stairs, leaving Lindsay with her mouth hanging open in the kitchen.

~*~

They had completely devoured the Chinese food and watched two movies when Danny noticed that Lindsay was having trouble getting comfortable. She was propped against the headboard with a few pillows behind her, but was constantly adjusting them. She had tossed the afghan she was using off and pulled it back over her so many times, that Danny had lost track. Her legs were constantly moving; from out in front of her, to crossed beneath her, curled to the side, and bent up in front of her. 

“Do you want me to pause the movie?” He asked her. “I can clean up the food while you go to the bathroom.”

“At the moment, my bladder’s okay. It’s my back that’s bothering me. It starts to bother me around this time every night.” She explained.

“D’you want a back rub?” Danny asked. Off her look he explained. “I read that your abdomen pushing forward causes stress on the spine.”

“No, thanks. I’ll be fine in a little while.” She told him. 

She was still squirming by the time the movie ended. Lindsay picked out the next movie while Danny took the food back to the kitchen. On his way back, he stopped by Lindsay’s room and grabbed her maternity pillow. When he got back to the room, he approached the bed with the pillow and handed it to her.

“Lie down and get yourself as comfortable as you can.” He said.

“Danny, I told you I don’t need a back rub. I’m fine.”

“You’re not fine. You’re obviously uncomfortable, so let me help you.” Grumbling the entire time, she did as she was told. 

As he started, she was tense, but he felt the tension release from her body as he ran his hands along the areas on either side of her spine. After awhile he realized that Lindsay had fallen fast asleep. As gently as he could, he pulled the covers from beneath her and pulled them over her. He gently tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and dropped a kiss on her forehead, before changing into an old pair of sweatpants and a wife beater and getting into bed.

He looked over at her one more time before removing his glasses and turning off the light.

“Goodnight, family.”

~*~

He dreamt that night. Dreams full of Lindsay and their family. A family that was constantly changing, never the same. Different children, different numbers, different places, but always with a smiling Lindsay. Little girls in beautiful dresses. Little boys with ball gloves. Lindsay rocking a baby to sleep. Him pacing the floor with a wailing baby. He could feel the weariness of dream Danny, but also the love. A love that he realized mirrored his own. Love for the child he couldn’t wait to hold and love for the woman that was currently home to that child. It wasn’t the fact that she was carrying the child that made him love her, it was her. Her kindness, her gentleness, the way she moved, and the things she said. It was everything about her.

~*~

When she awoke the next morning, she realized that she wasn’t alone. Her mind flashed back to that morning nine months ago, when she had woken up in the same room with an arm around her considerably smaller waist. Now she had no waist, but there was a hand resting gently on her ever-expanding belly. She placed her hand over Danny’s and slowly began to move her hand up and down his hand and arm. She heard him stir behind her.

“Good morning, sleepy head.” She said quietly as she twisted herself around to face him. His hand remained on her body as she turned. 

“Mornin’.” He drawled as he drew patterns over her side and then her belly. “You fell asleep last night. I didn’t want to wake you, so I left you.”

“It’s fine. Peanut likes that.” She told him as she placed his hand in the right spot to feel the baby move. 

It was right then that she knew. Lying in bed with their morning hair, and their hands moving together over their baby, she knew she was in love with him.

~*~

It would be any day now. The due date was less than a week away and they were as ready as they were going to be. The nursery was finished, their bags were packed, and their route to the hospital was planned. The only thing left to do was to wait for Peanut to start things rolling.

Lindsay had officially gone on maternity leave the week before, while Danny was working in the lab waiting for a call from Lindsay letting him know it was time to take her to the hospital.

So Danny wasn’t surprised when at 1:00 pm on Tuesday afternoon, his phone rang.

“I think it’s almost time.” She said, her voice sounded shaky.

“Really?” He asked.

“No, I just thought I’d call and play a prank on you.” She snarked. Then her voice went back to shaky. “Yes, it’s almost time. The contractions are getting longer and coming closer together.”

“I’m on my way.” He quickly hung up his phone and raced to the locker room to hang up his lab coat. On his way to Mac’s office, he ran into Stella. 

“Stel. Lindsay’s contractions have started. I’m heading home.” He informed her.

“Go. I’ll let Mac know. Tell Lindsay that we’re thinking about her.” She said with a smile.

“Thanks, Stel.”

~*~

Lindsay had just gotten settled in her room, when another contraction hit her. Danny held her hand and told her how well she was doing. 

“You’re doing so great, Linds. Before you know it Peanut’s gonna be here and it’ll all be worth it.”

“I know. I’ve got a little while before the next one, distract me for a bit.” She asked as he gave her some ice chips.

He ran a cool cloth over her forehead before deciding on a topic.

“I’m in love with you.” He whispered.

“What?” She asked, clearly startled. 

“I’m in love with you.” He repeated.

“Why are you telling me this now?” She asked.

“I couldn’t let you go through this not knowing that I love you. I don’t know if you feel the same way, but I’m in love with you. Powerfully, painfully in love with you. I need you to know that whatever happens, I love you and I love our baby.” Lindsay was silent while she digested the information, and then while she went through the next contraction. When it was over, she spoke again. 

“How long?” She asked him.

“I don’t know. I didn’t realize until Flack brought it up and then that night a few weeks ago, when you fell asleep. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything.” He said as he turned away, pretending to look at the magazines they had brought with them.

“I’m glad you did. It makes it easier.” She said. “Look at me.” He turned around but wouldn’t look directly at her. “I love you, too. That morning, when we just laid there talking about the future. I knew. I could spend every morning for the rest of my life like that. With you and our baby.” He looked up then as she smiled at him. Another contraction happened before they spoke again.

“We never do anything the easy way, do we?” He said.

“No. But we still get there in the end.” She said as he bent down to kiss her.

~*~

The labour had lasted longer than they had expected, but it flew out of their minds the minute the baby was placed in Lindsay’s arms. The baby had been taken to be cleaned and weighed and measured. All Lindsay wanted was to hold the baby again.

“Danny, she’s beautiful.” Lindsay said as she held her daughter in the privacy of her room. Tears were falling down her face.

“She’s perfect.” Danny responded as he kissed the top of Lindsay’s head and then their baby’s head. He too had tears forming in his eyes. He hadn’t expected to be this emotional. “Welcome to the world, Hannah Grace Monroe.”

“Messer.” Lindsay said.

“What?” He asked, moving his eyes from his daughter to his…she wasn’t sure what she was, but to Lindsay.

“Her name. It’s Hannah Grace Messer.” She stated as she looked right into his eyes. She held his gaze for a minute before turning back to her daughter. “We’re so glad that you’re here. Mommy and Daddy have been waiting for you for a very long time.”

“We have been waiting a long time.” Danny said as he took a picture of mother and daughter.


	8. Chapter 8

The nurse had taken Hannah to the nursery to give Lindsay time to rest. She had been fitfully dozing for the past two hours. Danny, however, had been unable to rest. He would sit and watch Lindsay for a few minutes, before heading to the nursery to check on Hannah, and then back to the room. When he returned to the room after his last visit to check on Hannah, he stood by Lindsay’s bed.

“Danny, you’re driving me crazy.” She slowly opened her eyes, and took one of his hands. “Why don’t you go home? Grab a shower and a couple hours of sleep. You can stop by the lab and show the team the pictures we printed.”

“No. I’m not leavin’ you and Hannah here alone.” 

“Nothing is gonna happen. And I’m not going to get any sleep with you here acting like a mama grizzly bear.”

“Oh, a mama grizzly bear?”

“Yeah. Now will you get out of here?”

“Fine, you win, but I can be back here in 20 minutes if anything happens.” He told her as he bent down to drop a kiss on her forehead. “I love you.”

“I love you, too. Now get out of here you big worrywart.”

As he left the room, Lindsay closed her eyes as sleep overtook her. 

~*~*~*~

Flack was the first to see Danny. As soon as he saw him, he rounded up the rest of the team and bombarded the haggard looking Danny.

“So, Dad, boy or girl?” Flack asked.

“Her name is Hannah Grace. Six pounds, eight ounces. She was born at 4:01 this morning.” Danny said as he passed around the pictures.

“She’s a very beautiful little girl.” Mac said as he looked at the photos.

“She looks like Lindsay, except for the eyes. She has your eyes. She’s gonna be a knock-out.” Stella added.

“Yeah, I don’t think I’ll be sleeping at all during her teen years.” Danny chuckled.

“How’s Lindsay doing?” Hawkes asked.

“Tired, sore, but she managed to kick me out, so I know she’s going to be fine.”

“She kicked you out?” Stella tried to hold back a laugh.

“Apparently I’m a worrywart.” He said grumpily. At that, Stella laughed out loud.

“Eh, Messer, why are there pictures of her hands and feet?” Flack asked curiously. 

“Just documenting that she has ten fingers and ten toes.” Off of Flack’s eyebrow raise, he grabbed his pictures back. “I’m gonna laugh so hard the day that you have a kid.” 

“She really is beautiful, Danny. Go get some rest and give Lindsay our love.” Stella told him as they walked towards the elevators. 

“Will do.” He said as he stepped into the elevator.

“And bring Hannah by, I want baby snuggles.” Stella said as the doors closed.

“Hey, Uncle Flack gets first dibs on baby snuggles.” Flack told Stella as they went back to Trace.

“Uncle Flack just made fun of Danny for taking pictures of his daughter’s feet and hands. Auntie Stella gets first dibs.”

“Did Auntie Stella spend an entire weekend with Denial Danny, while painting the kid’s bedroom?”

“Denial Danny?” 

“Yeah. Denying he’s in love with Lindsay. I asked him about it, and he was in complete denial. We’re not in love. It’s complicated. Complicated my ass. Having a baby, moving in together, these are not the actions of two people who aren’t in love.”

“Uncle Flack can have baby snuggles first.” Stella conceded.

~*~*~*~

On the day they brought their daughter home from the hospital, Danny’s mother was there to greet them. 

“Let me see my granddaughter.” She said the minute they walked in the door. “And you,” she pointed to Lindsay, “should be resting. They let you go home so soon. No thought at all.” With her granddaughter tucked securely in one arm, she quickly reorganized the room, and the people in it, to her satisfaction. Lindsay was on her side on the couch, with her feet in Danny’s lap. “Now, the only thing missing from this picture is a wedding ring.”

“Ma…” Danny started.

“No, Daniel. I let it go because having a baby is a scary thing, but I can’t anymore. Lindsay said that you asked her to marry her, but I know that she was just protecting you. I know you, Danny. When you want something, you don’t take no for an answer. If you had really asked her to marry you, you would have been engaged. How do you think that makes poor Lindsay feel? She’s good enough to give you this beautiful little creature, but she’s not good enough for you to marry?”

“Ma, would ya…” Danny tried to start again.

“No, I’m not finished. I spoke with that nice boy Don, that you work with and he tells me that you’re not even together. That he asked you and you don’t even love her. That is a lie. We all see you together. We all know that you are perfect together. Why you not love her? Why?”

“Can I talk now?” Danny asks. When he receives a nod from his mother, he continues. “You’re right. I didn’t ask Lindsay to marry me. We spent the night together after a party, and then we decided that because we worked together, seeing each other wasn’t the best idea.”

“And then I told him I was pregnant, and it was a big shock. We were just so focused on Hannah, and what was going to be best for her, that we never talked about us. So I threw Danny a lifeline that night.” Lindsay put in.

“But the more time we spent together, getting ready for Hannah, the more I realized how much I wanted them. So I offered her the extra space here, so that even if we weren’t together, I could still be close. When we were painting the nursery, Flack asked me and I didn’t know what to say, so I told him it was complicated.”

“It was my first night here that we both realized that we were in love. But by that time, it was too close to my due date so we just left it alone.”

“Until she went into labour, and then I couldn’t let her have my baby without letting her know how much I loved her.”

“So you love each other. Why aren’t you getting married?” His mother asked.

“Because I’ve never been asked.” Lindsay said simply.

“Lindsay, you wanna help get my mother off my case?” He smirked at her. She laughed out loud, but quickly stopped at his mother’s next words.

“Daniel James Messer that is not how you propose!” She whisper bellowed, in an effort to have Hannah remain asleep.

“Just kidding.” He got down on his knees next to the couch and pulled a velvet box from his jacket pocket. “Lindsay, I love you and Hannah, more than I’ve ever loved anything in my entire life, and the thought of not having you in my life makes me sick. I want to spend the rest of my life with you and our family. Will you marry me?” 

“Yes.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, that’s all folks. I’m toying with the idea of writing a sequel, but for now I think this ties things up pretty well. Thanks for reading.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you all liked it. I’m a review addict, so please review.


End file.
